Forum and Social Media Guidelines – 2/26/13

The following are the guidelines for this Forum and all NACA social media, including Facebook, Twitter, NACA Radio and Live Chat:

The following rules have always been posted near the top of the Forums page on the forum website at http://forums.naca.com, just above the links to the five forum categories:

“Welcome to the NACA Forums! Please keep in mind that this is a public forum. Any derogatory, inflammatory or questionable content will be removed by administrators. Also, please DO NOT post any personal information, such as passwords, NACA ID numbers, or Social Security numbers; NACA Staff will never require this information on the Forums.”

Disregard for the rules and other abuses of the forum and social media in general is not tolerated. Such activity hinders the effectiveness of the NACA social media efforts as tools for asking questions, sharing information and for those who are seeking help with problems in either the Home Save or Purchase programs. To prevent such abuses, the following rules apply for all NACA social media:

F(orum) comes before E(mail):

Maybe not in the alphabet, but here in the forum, F comes before E. In other words, please post your question in the Forum rather than circumvent the system and send an Email to an address you happen to find in the forum. The forum exists for several purposes, not the least of which is the sharing of information that may be beneficial to many of our members.

Most of the questions we receive are more generic in nature than most people think. By posting a question in the Forum first, it can be most likely answered here in the Forum unless it involves specific information in your file. By handling the question or problem here whenever possible, other members experiencing a similar problem could get the answer and help they need more quickly and without making a single additional keystroke.

If your post does require specific information, you will be advised on the best means of contact with us so any personal information can be communicated securely and confidentially. The NACA Live Chat function on the home page of the NACA website can also be used to securely ask specific questions regarding your file.

The Forum Does Not Replace NACA Services:

This Forum and other social media channels iare in no way a substitute for NACA Counseling and Advocacy services whether in the Home Save or Purchase Programs, and information found here should not be considered a replacement for communicating with a NACA counselor. While much of the information here is general in nature and applicable to most situations, specific questions regarding your file cannot be addressed in this or any other public forum for privacy reasons. Additionally, every file has unique factors and issues of its own. Therefore, you should always attempt to communicate your questions and concerns with your Mortgage Consultant in the Purchase Program and with a Counselor, Negotiator or Member Services rep in the Home Save program. Plus, the new NACA Live Chat function on the home page at www.naca.com allows you to contact a NACA staff member and communicate real-time to seek answers to your questions regarding your file. Our Member Services Department can be reached at 425-602-6222. The Member Services and Live Chat Teams are available from 8am to 10 pm Eastern Time Monday through Friday.

Keep it Civil:

Another serious issue is the tone used in some messages. We eagerly invite anyone who is having what they perceive to be any sort of problem with the NACA process or on line system to use this Forum and social media channels as a means of reaching out to us with those concerns so we can help solve them in whatever way we can. However, please remember to compose your message in the same manner in which you would like to receive the response. As noted above, “derogatory, inflammatory or questionable content” has always been grounds for posts to simply be deleted. This includes sarcasm as well as insulting and accusatory statements. The NACA Membership Agreement states that you agree to not engage “in any conduct deemed by NACA to be harmful, threatening, demeaning, or contrary to its interests, staff, mission and agents…”.

Determination of what content is considered inappropriate is at the sole discretion of the administrators of the NACA Forum and other NACA social media channels. While we are in fact eager to help with any problems that may occur, if you can’t write without being cynical, you may want to hold off a bit until you can be more rational in expressing your concerns.

No Personal Information:

While this one should be common sense, it is surprising how many people will post their name, NACA ID number and even their telephone number in a forum post or even on Facebook. Please remember that what you write here can be read by anyone on the internet. This is not a membership-restricted site, so please do not post any information about yourself here that you would not announce over a microphone to a crowd of twenty thousand people. Again, that personal information starts with and includes your NACA ID number. Never post it or any other personal information in a public forum, here or anywhere else on the web.

Oh, By the Way, Who Am I Talking To?

Under other circumstances, this would actually be funny. We far too commonly receive emails from members who go to substantial effort to make sure they have provided a wonderfully detailed explanation of their problem or question to insure we have all the information necessary to address their concerns… Then forget to include their NACA ID number, leaving us in the dark or doing detective work to find out which file we are dealing with.

It’s really a simple, common sense rule. NEVER post your ID in a public place, but ALWAYS include it (every time) in private communications such as an email or our new Live Chat system available through our website.

One Way or Another:

While we realize you intend to be thorough by doing so, posting the same message to the Forum, our Facebook page, and emailing it to a Forum administrator is actually counter-productive. Most likely, all three messages will go to the same person, which means answering the same question for the same person three separate times. This redundancy only slows down our response time to you and everyone else we are trying to help. So please limit yourself to one method when communicating with us.

Once is Enough:

Likewise, posting the same message in multiple threads in the Forum will have the same effect as posting through several different media.

Each still has to be addressed and responded to separately, which only slows down our response time and can confuse members who may then falsely think that they have read the entire thread previously and possibly miss out on some important information that could have a bearing on their own file.

Similarly, multiple messages each day with minor or random questions bog things down too. We want to answer those questions for you, but in such a circumstance, please send them all in one daily message if possible.

As you can see, these are really just common sense rules, largely based on common courtesy. Abiding by these guidelines will help the NACA staff help you in whatever means possible and encourage a positive, free flow of information through this Forum, which is its most fundamental purpose. Thanks!